China's ambassador to Vanuatu said Monday he won't lodge a formal protest
after being pushed on the shoulder by the South Pacific island nation's
fist-waving prime minister.

Ambassador Bao Shusheng said the incident occurred as a parliamentary session
ended in Vanuatu's capital, Port Vila, last Wednesday.

Bao said he stepped forward to ask Prime Minister Serge Vohor why he had
ordered the Taiwanese flag flown outside a city hotel -- a move that offended
the ambassador because Taiwan is an integral part of China.

"But before I said any word ... he bunched his fist and showed me his fist,
then pushed my right shoulder" with it, Bao told The Associated Press by
telephone.

"Before I realized what had happened, he turned and rushed into his car and
he left the scene, and I was stopped by his bodyguards," the ambassador said.

Vohor's two bodyguards stopped the ambassador, Bao added, but didn't touch
him as Vohor left in the vehicle. He didn't regard the "push" by Vohor as "an
attack."

"I think this is an insult as I'm representing the People's Republic of China
as the ambassador and he is the prime minister. This should not be the
attitude of a prime minister to an ambassador," he added.

"I think this is a personal act," he said, adding that no diplomatic protest
would be lodged.

Vohor could not be immediately contacted for comment.

The incident comes as Vohor faces a motion of no confidence in the nation's
Parliament, a vote delayed by a legal action challenging the motion's status
under the nation's Constitution.

He is under pressure after 16 lawmakers, including most of his Cabinet, broke
ranks and crossed the floor to join the opposition, leaving the premier with
just 15 legislators supporting him in the 52-member house.

Vohor's troubles began November 3 when he signed a formal diplomatic
recognition agreement with Taiwan in Taipei during a secret visit
seeking funds for his impoverished nation.

Since then his Cabinet has twice rejected the deal, saying it would
jeopardize links with China.

On November 24, Australia threatened to slash aid to Vanuatu if its
government did not crack down on corruption. But it insisted the issue was not
related to the Taiwan recognition row.